by Calculated Risk on 8/14/2019 11:33:00 AM

From the HAR: The Houston Real Estate Market Heats Up in July

Consumers kept Realtors across greater Houston busy in July, accounting for the greatest one-month volume of single-family home sales of all time. According to the latest monthly report from the Houston Association of Realtors® (HAR), July single-family home sales totaled 8,953. That is up 11.6 percent year-over-year and exceeds the last one-month sales volume record set in June 2018 (8,385). On a year-to-date basis, sales are 3.0 percent ahead of 2018’s record volume. Realtors point to low mortgage interest rates and the steady growth in inventory for the solid monthly performance.

Housing inventory continues to outpace 2018 with a 4.3-months supply compared to a 4.1-months supply last July. However, inventory peaked in June 2019 at a 4.4-months supply. Housing inventory is now holding at levels that prevailed before Hurricane Harvey struck in August 2017 and is providing a broader array of options for home buyers.

Sales of all property types rose 10.9 percent in July, setting a new record with a total of 10,478 units. The previous high for total property sales in a single month was 10,115 in June 2018, which marked the first time that figure ever broke 10,000. Total dollar volume for the month increased 12.8 percent to $3.1 billion.

“July was a strong month for home sales and rentals across the Houston area,” said HAR Chair Shannon Cobb Evans with Heritage Texas Properties. “We believe that the Houston real estate market is on track for another record year, and that is directly attributed to a healthy local economy, low mortgage interest rates and an improving supply of homes.”
emphasis added

Total active inventory was up 9.6% YoY to 45,498 properties from 41,527 properties in July 2018. Sales are on pace for a record year.